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y No. 748,734.' PATENTED JAN.. 5, 1904.

A. G.`HOUGH.

WEAVE FR SHADES, 6m. APPLwAirIoN FILED DBO. 1a, 1902.

1 1'0 MODEL.

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life. 748,734.

UNITED STATES Patented January 5, 1904.

:PATENT OFFICE,

AZEL C. HOUGH, OF JANESVILLE, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR TO HOUGH SHADECORPORATION, OF JANESVILLE, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION OF CON- NGTICUT.

AWEAVE `Fon SHADES, sw. 'i

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 748,734, dated January5, 1904.

Application iiled December 16, 1902. Serial No. 135,386. (No model.)

To all whom, it 11m/y concern:

Be it known that I, AZ'ELC. HOUGH, a citizen of the United States,residing at Janesville, in the county of Rockand State of Wisfconsin,have invented a new and useful Weave for Shades and the Like, ofwhich the follow-Y ing is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in both the 'method of fabricatingshades, curtains, screens, dac., and the weave itself in which weftsplints, strips, or slats of wood or other materiai having some degreeof stability are united by warp threads or strands, which are wrapped ortwisted about the weft units to hold them together; and my inventionresides in the peculiar manner in which the warp and weft are united,more particularly to the twisting of the warp-strands and theinterlac'ing of the same with the weft units. The weft units may be ofany snitable shape, but are generally flat when made 'of wood.

y The object of my invention is to provide a method of weaving fabric ofthe kind noted in an efficient and practicable man ner to bring aboutresults not heretofore obtained.,

A further object is to provide a strong and lasting shade, curtain, orscreen in which displacement of or end chase, as it is known,

vin the splints when the fabric is swayed vio-A lently by the wind isprevented and the durability and iife of said fabric prolongedindefinitely; and to thisend thewarp is locked around or infolds incross-laps inv alternate directions every other weft unit, therebyclosely uniting the warp-strands, so that they are practicallyinseparable, and not onlyl holding the weft units in proper position,but so retaining themthat endwise displacement common in other forms ofweave is in this absolutely prevented. As afurther safeguard againstdisplacement I prefer to arrange adjacent cross-laps ou the same weftunit in opposite directions-that is -to say, if one extends obliquelyupward to the right the next unit on the same side will extend obliquelyupward to the left. The method and these features of fabrication, withmeans for fastening the fabric at the top and bottom, will behereinafter more fully described, and particularly pointed out in theclaims.v

Heretofore Woven fabric having a more or less stable weft has comprisedno adequate means for providing the necessary strength and aording therequisite capacity -for resisting torsional strain, so that when a shademade of such fabric is exposed to the wind it is liable to either becometwisted out of shapey orvhave some of its weft units forced out ofplace-in short, the warp separates and the whole shade becomes so loosethat in timeit Similar letters refer to similar parts thron ghout theseveral views.

Proceeding first with a description of the method, it should be saidthat ordinarily a specially-constructed loomfor carrying out the same ina practical manner may be desirable, not to say necessary, and suchaloom is disclosed in my application for United States Letters Patentfiled October 16, 1901,

SerialNd 78,791', and divisional applications the weaving-heads revolvedhalf-way around. Then another splint is inserted andthe revoi lution ofthe weaving-heads continued inthe same direction another half-turn, thuslnaking a complete revolution in one direction. Next a third splint isinserted and the weaving-heads revolved half-,way around in the oppositedirection, and finally a fourth splint is inserted and the reverse orlast-mentioned movement of the Weaving-heads continued to com plete thesecond full revolution, which is,'however, in a reverse direction tothat of the first complete revolution. The weavingheads have nowdescribed a full circle in both directions, with a cessation of motionintermediate of each, and are next reversed to begin again, as with thefirst splint, the several operations being repeated and continuedindelinitely in the way described. It is to be understood thateachweaving-head operates two weft-strands.

By twisting the warp-strands in the man ner described in theprecedingparagraph and rotating adjacent weaving-heads in the oppositedirections at the same time-that is, while one is turning to the lettthe next is turning to the right, and vice versa-the results hereinafterdescribed in detailare produced. This is a desirable feature ot' themethod, though perhaps not an indispensable one.

The weave itself is described in detail as follows: The shade shown inthe drawings consists generally of a plurality of light wooden splintsor weft units a, connected by warpstrands b and having top and bottomretaining-strips c. To assist in describing the peculiarities of theweave in a clear and cornprehensive manner, four of the splints a havebeen selected and designated as a', a", am; and am', and thewarp-strands near the righthand edge of the shade are designated as band b" in the drawings. The strand b passes obliquely upward to theright over the splint a', and the strand b passes obliquely upward tothe .left over the back of said splint. Next the strand b" passesvertically upward over the front of the splint a" or at right angles tosaid splint, and the strand b passes in the same way over the back ofthis splint. Then the strand b passes upward over the front of thesplint a'" obliquely to the left, and the strand b" passes upward overthe back of said splint obliquely to the right, and nally the strands b"and b pass vertically upward on opposite sides of the splint am or atright angles thereto, the strand b being on the front and the strand bon the back. The same general arrangement of the stands is maintainedthroughout the fabric with the following exception:

The parallel strands, which embrace the splints a" and a"* adjacent toor at the left' of the strands just described change position, so as tobring the lap of the strand' another change or exception, consisting inchanging the oblique directions of the cross strands or laps whichembrace the splint a in the adjacent line of warp, the front lap herepassing upward to the left and the rear lap to the right, j ust thereverse of corresponding laps of the strands b' and b", and the samething is true of the oblique strands or laps which embrace the splinta". The. above applies, of course, to any given corresponding section ofthe fabric. The dierent positions and directions of the laps in adjacentlines of warp just noted are the result of simultaneously rotatingadjacent weaving-heads in opposite direction.

From the foregoing it will be readily understood that each second splinta is locked by the strands b against endwise movement, and theintermediate splints are held no less securely. By interlacing andcrossing the warpstrands and the weft-splints in the particular mannerherein pointed out a close and even weave is obtained and a fabricproduced which comprises all of the advantages that should be expectedwit-hout any of the disadvantages so often found. The warp-strandscannot spread or separate, and different sections of the fabric are soheid together by said strands as to react upon each other, as it were,when endwise pressure or torsional strain is brought to bear on one ormore splints.

The shade is completed by taking a piece of fabric of the required sizeand fastening the retaining-strips c thereto at the top and bottom. Twoof the strips c are placed each side of the fabric at the bottom andnailed together, and two more are employed in a similar manner at thetop. It is to be understood, however, that any suitable means may besubstituted for finishing the shade and fastening 'the ends of thewarp-strands, the cut ends of said strands in the present instance beingsecu rely held between the upper splints a and the retaining-strips c.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is`

1. The method of Weaving shades and the like, consisting in turning thewarp-strandsA about two weft units with a stop between each half of therevolution, and then in turning said warp-strands about two other weftunits in the opposite direction, with a stop between each halfoftherevolution, and the insertion of one weft unit between the warp-Astrands at each stop.:

2. The method of weaving, consisting in giving the warp-strands ahalf-turn about a weft unit, in giving said strands a second half-turnin the same direction about another adjacent weft unit, in giving thewarp`strands a half-turn in the opposite direction about warp-strands asecond half-turn in the last direction about another adjacent weft unit.

3. The method of weaving, consisting in turning the warp-strands abouttwo weft units with a stop between eachhalf of the revolution and theinsertion of aA weft unit at each stop, in turning said warp-strandsabout two other weft units in the opposite direction with a stop betweeneach half of the revolution and the insertion of a weft unit at eachstop, and simultaneously turning other warpstrands about the same weftunits in like manner but in opposite directions.

IOO

IIO

IIS

lIZO another adjacent weft unit, and ingiving the in inserting a weftunit between two contiguous warp units,then giving the warp units ahalf-twist together causing them to cross t0 opposite sides of'the weftunit, then inserting another weft unit, then giving to the warp unitsanother half-twist together in the same direction as the firsthalf-twist causing the warp units to again cross to opposite sides ofthe weft, then inserting another weft unit and giving the warp unitsanother half-twist together but in a direction opposite to the directionof the first two half-twists, then insertinganother weft unit and givingthe warp units another half-twist together in the same direction as thelast or third half-twist, and so continuing, two' half-twists of thewarp units together in one direction and then two half-twists in reversedirection, with a weft unit inserted between the warp units at eachhalf-twist of the warp units.

5. The improvement in the method of weaving shades and the like,consisting of insertinga weft unit between pairs of warp-strands,twisting each pair of warp-strands together, then inserting another weftunit between the Warpstrands and again twisting each pair ofwarp-strands together, the twist beingin the same direction as the rsttwist, then inserting another weft unit and again twisting each pair ofstrands together but in reverse direction to the two first twists, theninserting another weft unit and again twisting each pair of strandstogether in the saine direction as the last twist, and so continuing sothat the adjacent weft units will be held beween warpstrands twisted inone direction and the next two adjacent weft units will loe held betweenwarp-strands twisted in a direction opposite to the twist of the strandsholding the first two weft units. v 1

6. A weave for shades and the like, comprising a plurality of weftunits, and warpstrands, the latter passing at right angles over thefront and back of alternate weft units and obliquely over the front andback of the intermediate weft units.

7. A weave comprising weft units and crosslaps of warp alternatingwithparallel laps of warp upon both sides of the woven structure.

8. A weave comprising weft units and crosslaps of warp alternating withparallel laps of warp, the oblique directions of said cross-laps on thesame side of the same weft unit in adjacentlinesof warp, beingdierent-t. e., one inclined to the right and the other to the left whenseen from a given point with the weft held horizontally. l

9. A weave for shades and the like, comprising a plurality of weft unitsheld between pairs of warp units, the latter arranged to cross one weftunit in a line substantially at right angles to the said weft unit, thento cross the next adjacent weft unit ohlquely, then to cross the nextadjacent weft unit substantially at right angles, then to cross the next4adjacent weft unit obliquely, said oblique direction alternatelyreversingi. e., rst inclining toward thev right then inclining towardthe left.

l0. A weave comprising a plurality of weft units and warp-strandspassing in and out 'over the front and back of said weft units,alternate front and back laps of the strands being in substantially thesame straight line, and the other laps extending obliquely in op Ypositedirections over the front and back of each alternate weft unit.

11. A weave comprising weft units, a warpstrand extending at rightangles over the front of one of said weft units, crossing obliquely theback of a second weft unit, extending at right angles over the front ofa third weft unit, and crossing obliqnely the back of a fourth wett unitin a dilerent direction to the first oblique course, and a secondwarp-strand extending at right angles over the back of said rst weftunit, crossing obliquely the front of said second weft unit in anopposite direction to that of the lap at the back, extending at rightangles over the back of said third weft unit, and crossing obliquely thefront of said fourth weft unit in an opposite direction to that of thelap at the back.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

AZEL C. HOUGH.

Witnesses:

G. G. CHETTENDEN, M. F. PANNOCK.

